This is a remarkable performance which has deservedly gotten a lot of love over the years. It came shortly after the Warfield/Saenger PAC/Radio City Music Hall shows, so the boys’ acoustic chops were honed razor sharp. But unlike the Reckoning gigs, on 12/6/80 there were no electric sets to follow up with, no pressure or expectations, and nowhere else to be! This was the only show on their calendar for a week in either direction; a loose home turf performance for a small crowd in a small room. The perfect occasion for them to dial in, “channel the muse”, and paint one of the most beautiful acoustic masterpieces in decorated GD hollow body history. Download the Betty Aud and keep this one legendary!

We are living as the Almighty intended when
we do good onto others
with no expectation of recompense or reward.
"As you do onto the least of MY brothers
so you do onto ME" Matthew 25:40
This is as real as it gets!
That path is for your steps alone...

Birdsong Jam es goode

One of the best AUD's I have heard in a long time. Amazing versions of most of the songs featured on "reckoning

... even if (as always) death or the fear thereof is ever present in the lyrics. The set begins with a song is about being eaten by a giant wolf, but of course it turns out alright.
I love these guys!
The urge to play "To Lay Me Down" must have been strong. Somehow Jerry resisted ...

a pretty little thing

This gig never gets mentioned in any of the 100 books written bout the GD. I think its a keeper. Great story in the Grateful Dead history.

Hands down the best Acoustic performance of 1980. If you've overlooked this recording, do yourself a favor and spend some time with it.

I have loved this performance from the moment I first put ears to it. It's a combination of tight playing, small room, and the boys all sitting close together, with those classic acoustic songs, and some fun and interesting stage banter to set the atmosphere.
If you are sitting in a quiet room with big speakers, the sound quality is f**king amazing and you will love this. However--if you are riding in an ordinary car, or if you are listening while cooking, or while cleaning, or while mowing the lawn, or even while taking the train somewhere...it becomes really hard to hear the songs. You have to have excellent speakers, no local noise, or turn your normal speakers up real damn loud to hear the music.
So 5 for performance, 3 for finicky sound quality that demands an extremely good sound system, avg = 4.

real nice down home family party

I am not sure as to the "Pre-show enhancements" the band members were using in 1980, but it seems to me that the fact this was an afternoon show, coupled with being for kids with special needs, maybe the clarity of the words and tight guitar riffs may have not been a coincidence.
This is a great show for a car ride, and with the speakers dialed in (especially for those with BOSE or upgrade radios) this one is a treat!

How am I just discovering this show today? Holy Cow! I love it!
Yeah its the same acoustic set list as usual, but this just has "the sound" even without knowing where or who the audience was.
Thank you again archive and all involved in providing this recording. "Grateful Dead Shows on This Day in History" is the greatest invention for the internet EVER!

I am surprised that for an exclusive acoustic show for a small but special audience of disabled people, the Dead didn't stray from their regular Warfield/RCMH acoustic setlist. Don't get me wrong, the playing is great and this is quite interesting listen, but perhaps they could have added a few different tunes instead of performing a standard acoustic set. Those who have other '80 acoustic sets will acknowledge that the setlists are all basically the same and unfortunately this one follows suit.

not much add here; finally got around to listening to this just yesterday and it's a fantastic acoustic performance. Cassidy smmmookes! Cliff Hucker says this may be the best ever acoustic Bird Song and i think he's right!

UNREAL!!!!! GOD BLESS THE GRATEFUL DEAD!!!!! GOD BLESS BETTY & ESPECIALLY GOD BLESS THE CHILDREN!!!! SIMPLY INCREDIBLE

No PA and vocal mics for Jerry and Bobby. Awesome. Gottta love Betty.

What a fantastic show and great picture over at flicker. I just wish that the video cameras were rollin.

Very fun show, thanks for posting!

Its kind of like "the pizza tapes" with an audience. Generous were The Grateful Dead. Great performance, minor short dropoffs, tracks 9 and 10 recording a little rough. And GD as opening act for Santa Claus-brilliant. Performance was a benefit for Muscular Dystrophy Association.

i only wished they did more silly shows like this..... my son would have loved it

If you turn this WAY up, you can hear a child say, "I want rock and roll." Jerry, being a kind soul, said, "You do?! This song is kinda like rock and roll. This next song." They then go into an outstanding Cassidy. This wonderful concert is now not a moment lost in time. Thanks for the Flicker link, the music, and the memories.

"when you remember me" is a movie made for tv based somewhat on this show.
i give the performance 5 for sure
the movie---check it out

What a good show! I acquired this show years ago from an old taper who gave me a sweet-sounding copy. Thanks for the Flikr link. . . must have been truly amazing to be there. The Dead were the innovators of being magnanimous.

WOW! This recording is amazing! Betty Cantor mic'd the band in a small room, with no PA, and the results are fantastic. Thanks to the previous reviewer for the photograph web link....check out the steal-your-face on the wheelchair...it melts my heart.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/zoooma/2484480462/

This is a great recording of a really fun sounding show the Dead did out of love and charity. It sounds like a show done for a school assembly with the teacher doing the introductions. I love that "thank you to the clowns" remark she makes before introducing the band. Clowns and The Grateful Dead! Who could want more? It sounds like Betty's microphones were right on the stage. Great upload! Thanks for this!

First, I love all these songs and that entire short acoustic era for the band in the early 80s (just like i like the 1970 acoustic sets). The Dead kind of heady stuff for kids, but this stuff goes down so sweetly.
But it's the incidental nature of the performance and the recording that I love about this one. Yes, I've heard them play these songs before -- and with far better sound quality -- but this feels like how this music was meant to be enjoyed.

i'm not given to superlatives around the dead, if only because i can't usually hold the entire body of their work in my mind long enough to make career-spanning judgments. but so far as i know, this is definitely the sweetest set i know. the energy is really wonderful. and you know, we don't often get betty cantor auds....
there are many great renditions of songs here, enough that it's foolish to mention them individually in my opinion. just get this downloaded to your computer, and enjoy....

Am pretty sure this was Bread and Roses benefit. What a gem show, fun and joyful for all the right reasons. Thank you for posting! Four stars for recording and rarity, five just because.

To me this show is all that is pure and beautiful about music. We're talking about the Grateful Dead, in a small rec hall of some sort, playing to a bunch of children and adults at what I would imagine is a christmas party. This, my friends and fellow dead heads is music the way it should be... and lets not forget that Monkey and the Engineer...

They are kind enough to play after a parade of clowns and a mystery guest (Santa Claus). Wish I was there. 4 stars just for the weirdness.

You know I just stumbled upon this show by going to "shows this day in history" and my oh my what a find! I feel like the heavens have opened up to rain down on me! Gotta love 'Monkey & the Engineer'.
Incidentally, if you like this you've got to check out Jerry's 'Not For Kids Only' CD with David Grisman.

After listening to all of the famous Sept/Oct. 1980 Warfield and Radio City accoustic sets here at Archive, I thought I heard all of these fabulous accoustic sets. Then I stumble on to this one! This is one of those rare, amazing finds that exist here at Archive.
This is the Dead playing for pure fun at a small holiday party. This is not in a big hall, but in a suburban community center in front of a small group of kids and parents and a few local fans who probably heard a wild rumor that the Dead would be at the rec center. The woman introducing the band tells the audience to quiet down because there is no sound system. She knows that they are big rock stars and knows Jerry is the lead, but is unsure of Bob's last name. The band then goes on to do a fabulous set. Very, very few of us ever saw the Dead at a venue like this!
Like the Warfield/Radio City gigs, Cassidy and Bird Song are the summit of the set. Cassidy is a great done accousticly. (As Jerry says here, it's sort of like rock and roll.) And Bird Song smokes. But every song in this set is well played and well sung. Pure 5-star material.
As for the sound, this recording is better than many audience recordings that people rave about. The main audio problem is some clipping in places. The fact that there is a recording of this event at all is amazing, let alone the remarkable fact that we can download it.

You know, this show is good, and whyle I agree that Birdsong ar high point, I love the Monkey and The Engineer, I mean really! it is just a fun song! my dad used to sing it to me all of the time. The rest of the show was... meh, ok, but it is the dead! gotta love it!

Listen to Jerry's accoustic guitar. It sounds like an electric. The distortion is just painfully obvious. Get a hold of a decent copy of "Reckoning", listen to that, then try to listen to a complete song on this. I tell you, I could not do it.

From the get go, this is a magical show. The song selection is very good and played with lots of emotion. Cassidy and Bird Song are the high points of the show for me. The sound quality is amazing and well worth the download. I know it sounds cliche, but listen to this show, close your eyes, and you're there!!

These are crystal clear and there is no other way to listen to this other than the audience tapes as the board would not do the majesty of this set justice - This has as much noise on it as the Melkweg shows -
REQUIRED LISTENING

great list but the sound quality is odd there is too much noise...its all loud and almost unbearable...am I crazy? I know others seems to really like this show.
Nice show to have but is too audience sounding for me.

This site is absolutly amazing to me, its hard to believe! having this site,a deadbase, and a tapers companion, what else could i ever want! I LOVE ARCHIVE!!!!!

This is perhaps the best of the '80 acoustic sets - a MUST HAVE. Indeed this is in front of a very small (and young!) audience. Although there is no PA, the vocals are definitely miked in the mix. Check out this photo from the show and see for yourselves:
http://www.moonvalleystudio.com/vintage/vintage10.html />As for listening, good headphones are a REQUIREMENT! How else would you hear the kid telling Jerry "I want rock-n-roll." Jerry responds with "This is kind of like rock-n-roll...this next tune" before launching into Cassidy. Lots of great stuff going on all through the show that you would certainly miss without headphones. At the end of the Ripple track, the emcee hands out certificates of appreciation, but Brent is already gone - "Where's Brent," she asks and is shocked at how "shy" the band is. Phil responds "Years of practice, ma'am. Years of practice!" It's funny, too, that the band wasn't even the "headline" act - Santa Claus was!
To add to the provenance of this cassette tape, it was found in one of Betty's siezed storage lockers and the original CD in circulation also contains Reckoning alternate mixes found in the same box.

I love how the "emcee" lady thanks the clowns before introducing the band, and then mispronounces Weir's name. A wonderful treat from the days when they were loose and agreeable.

This show IS special. Not only are the dead playing to children... they are playing to special needs children. I have a picture that looks like it is from a newspaper, and on one of the wheel chairs there is DEFINATLY a stealie sticker.

This really is amazing. Certainly as good a quality recording as you could ask for...and this is just so obviously special. One of the few times I really love the Aud recording. You can tell Jerry is singing to kids...he over enunciates the words to the tunes...at least for the first few tunes. Its also kinda cool that obviously very few people there really know what they are seeing...does one person ask Jerry what he is doing when he is tuning up?
Anyway, beyond all that, the jam in Birdsong alone makes this 5 stars...get this now.

yes, a cliche, but I would'a loved to hav'ben ther'. I was the same age as Jerry when this was recorded. A warm/heartfelt show, Bird Song /It aint no lie/Ripple, gives me goose bumps. Sound quality under the circumstances is just fine..you ARE there.Download,don't hesitate.
Thank you.

I have a picture of this show from a book.I always wanted to hear it.Saw the setlist in Deadbase and always wondered about this one.
The Dead were cool to say the least to play a nice not for kids only set for the faithful who were there.Who was there?
Jerry introduces the band.
This a must for your expensive headphones.
This is probally the only recording?
A real Betty-Audience.
Jonathan Aizen must be Jerry,I have finally figured it out.
10 stars.
Were there even tickets printed for this night?
The band sounds like they are playin for kids.
Only once.
Other special shows would be JGB Oregon'82 prison show,etc.

I am listening for the first time to this show via a radio program I listen to every tuesday night. It does sound great so I will download now. Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

As the other review notes, it sounds like there are very few people at this show, and very likely, few of them knew the music as there is no reaction to the start of Ripple. This is simply an awesome show.

I've seen a picture from this show, judging from that, it looks like the audience consists mainly of children in wheelchairs, making ne think this may have been part of Neil Young's Bridge School efforts. Anyway, for the no PA system (as announced by the lady introducing them), the sound is very very good, with an ambience like one was there. I have a personal reason for saying that a '5' is not a high enough rating for this fine show!!!!